Deck 18: The Aztec and Inca Empires, 1300-1550

Question 1

In Aztec society emperors were chosen through

A) inheritance.
B) election.
C) appointment.
D) civil war.

Answer 1

election.

Question 2

Which of these best describes Aztec society?

A) egalitarian
B) stratified but open
C) rigidly stratified
D) stratified by birth

Answer 2

stratified but open

Question 3

Which of these was assured by the Aztec cosmic mission theory?

A) fertility
B) sunlight
C) rainfall
D) spring

Answer 3

sunlight

Question 4

What arechinampas?

A) tombs of the elite
B) latticework platforms for farming
C) temples to the city gods
D) packed earth roadways

Question 5

Who controlled the choice of emperor for the Aztecs?

A) Quetzalcoatl
B) the Tecuhtli
C) the Tlatlacotin
D) the Macehualtin

Question 6

Humans were sacrificed regularly in Aztec society because they believed

A) the gods required blood as an offering.
B) foreigners were devils, so they sacrificed them.
C) the sun could be sustained only through repeated offerings of beating human hearts.
D) the gods would bless their crops only in exchange for the sacrifice of a virgin.

Question 7

Amerind civilizations were relatively new in the 1500s because

A) they did not learn to hunt and gather until relatively late in their history.
B) their transitions from hunting and gathering to farming were delayed.
C) they resisted the transition from farming to industrialization.
D) they had extensive connections with each other, so they did not need to be self-sufficient.

Question 8

The Tolteca caste was the

A) merchant caste.
B) artisan caste.
C) commoner caste.
D) slave caste.

Question 9

Which people were sacrificed in Aztec society?

A) physically handicapped children
B) virgins
C) slaves
D) prisoners of war

Question 10

Which of the following civilizations is the oldest?

A) Aztec
B) Inca
C) Maya
D) Texcoco

Question 11

Within Aztec society, merchant and artisan were

A) held in contempt.
B) autonomous castes.
C) seen as of little value.
D) harshly exploited by the ruling class.

Question 12

Which of these characteristics distinguished civilizations of the Americas from those of Europe and Asia?

A) greater isolation
B) lack of towns
C) failure to develop complex societies
D) lack of trade

Question 13

The emperor was almost always a

A) warrior.
B) female.
C) judge.
D) priest.

Question 14

Compared to contemporary European cities, Tenochtitlan was

A) more primitive.
B) dirtier and less healthy.
C) more open to attack.
D) much larger.

Question 15

The Pochteca caste was the

A) merchant caste.
B) artisan caste.
C) commoner caste.
D) slave caste.

Question 16

The Macehualtin caste was the

A) merchant caste.
B) artisan caste.
C) commoner caste.
D) slave caste.

Question 17

The Aztecs called themselves

A) Mexica.
B) Texcoco.
C) Chinampa.
D) Tlaloc.

Question 18

The Tlatlacotin caste was the

A) merchant caste.
B) artisan caste.
C) commoner caste.
D) slave caste.

Question 19

According to legend, the Aztecs expected to find at their promised land

A) a land flowing with milk and honey.
B) an eagle on a cactus eating a snake.
C) a smoking mountain.
D) the god of the sun.

Question 20

Which of these was True of membership in the noble class?

A) upward mobility only
B) downward mobility only
C) upward and downward mobility
D) no social mobility

Question 21

Which society is responsible for creating the potato from a nut-like root?

A) Inca
B) Aztec
C) Spanish
D) Maya

Question 22

Who laid the foundations of the Inca Empire?

A) Viracocha
B) Pachacuti
C) Montezuma
D) Topa Inca Yupanqui

Question 23

Which of these explains the Inca use of mummies?

A) It was the focus of ancestor worship.
B) It symbolically tied the rulers to the spiritual world.
C) It proved the purity of imperial rule.
D) It functioned as a family tree for the Inca ruling family.

Question 24

Which Amerind empire could best be considered a melting pot?

A) Aztec
B) Maya
C) Inca
D) Toltec

Question 25

How was the Inca imperial line kept pure?

A) The Sapa Inca remained celibate.
B) The Sapa Inca always married his sister.
C) The imperial family was a caste.
D) Only sons of two Sapa Incas could rule.

Question 26

How did slavery in the Aztec empire differ from the Atlantic slave trade?

A) African slaves experienced more opportunities than Aztec slaves.
B) Aztec slavery was not racially based.
C) Aztec slavery was only temporary.
D) African slaves were forced to work the land; Aztecs were forced to engage in combat.

Question 27

Aztec healers did all of the following EXCEPT

A) treat dental cavities.
B) perform brain surgery.
C) develop medicines.
D) inoculate against diseases.

Question 28

Which of the following does NOT accurately describe the physical structure of Andean people, compared to non-Andeans?

A) greater height
B) enlarged hearts
C) relatively large number of red corpuscles
D) a lung capacity was 40 percent greater than people in lower altitudes

Question 29

Aztec legend stated that men who died in combat were reborn as

A) gods.
B) hummingbirds.
C) cobras.
D) white men.

Question 30

Which of the following was NOT a capital offense in the Aztec empire?

A) homosexuality
B) adultery
C) theft
D) treason

Question 31

What was the Inca practice of mitima?

A) a process of assimilation
B) a religious ritual
C) the famous rain dance
D) the practice of meditation

Question 32

Which element of Aztec society was absent from Inca society?

A) commoners
B) slaves
C) nobles
D) warriors

Question 33

TheInca Empire was centered around

A) the Yucatan Peninsula.
B) the Andes Mountains along the Pacificcoast.
C) the Amazon River valley to the the Atlantic Ocean.
D) the southern tip of South America.

Question 34

Which of these explains the substantial differences between the Aztec and Inca empires?

A) the two centuries that separated them
B) isolation caused by mountainous country
C) the Pacific Ocean was too wide for either to cross
D) cultural animosity

Question 35

Which people linked their vast empire through roads and bridges across the Andes?

A) Aztec
B) Inca
C) Maya
D) Toltecs

Question 36

Which of these groups in Aztec society was the least open in terms of social mobility?

A) commoners
B) merchants
C) slaves
D) artisans

Question 37

How did education differ in Aztec and Incan societies?

A) The Aztec did not have an education system.
B) The Incas did not have an education system.
C) The Incas only educated noble sons; Aztecs practiced universal education.
D) The Aztecs only educated noble sons; Incas practiced universal education.

Question 38

How did Inca succession differ from most other monarchies?

A) It was more rigid in that the oldest son assumed the throne regardless of his age.
B) It was more flexible in that the emperor did not have to name his eldest son heir.
C) The youngest son always inherited the throne in the Inca Empire.
D) It allowed girls to assume the throne.

Question 39

Commoners in Aztec society could do all of the following EXCEPT

A) own land.
B) vote.
C) marry into the merchant caste.
D) share in the spoils of conquest.

Question 40

Aztec legend stated that women who died in childbirth were reborn as

A) goddesses.
B) hummingbirds.
C) cobras.
D) white women.

Question 41

Aztec policy towards conquered peoples was similar to that of the Romans.

Question 42

Which of these was most important in the Spanish victory over the Inca Empire?

A) superior weapons
B) the spread of smallpox
C) Spanish treachery
D) misunderstandings based on different cultures

Question 43

Aztecs were traditionally less ruthless than the Incas.

Question 44

In the Aztec empire, the emperor and nobility ruled together.

Question 45

How did Atahuallpa respond to the Spanish "gift" of a book of Christian devotions?

A) He killed the priest who brought him the book.
B) He died because the book was infected by the smallpox germ.
C) He adopted Christianity and joined the priesthood.
D) He threw it on the ground.

Question 46

Both Aztec and Inca religion centered on worship of

A) a moon goddesses.
B) a sun god.
C) the spirits of former emperors.
D) ancestors.

Question 47

Why did the Totonacs and Tlaxcaltecs assist the Spaniards?

A) They thought they were gods.
B) Aztec rule had been oppressive.
C) They were promised riches if they were victorious.
D) The Spaniards kidnapped the oldest sons in each tribe.

Question 48

Why was Montezuma's army somewhat small when Cortés arrived?

A) Cortes formed alliances with neighboring tribes who usually provided soldiers for the Aztec army.
B) It was harvest season.
C) Many of the soldiers had fled in fear.
D) Outbreaks of smallpox had killed many men.

Question 49

Which of these was the most important weakness of the Aztecs in the face of Spanish conquerors?

A) the identification of Cortés as the god Quetzalcóatl
B) the animosity of Aztec subject peoples
C) the large numbers of Aztec slaves
D) Aztec lack of defenses

Question 50

The institution of slavery was nonexistent in Incan society.

Question 51

Upon first sight of the Spaniards, some Aztecs believed that

A) these men were coming to liberate them from the Inca.
B) they were angels from another world.
C) the legend of Quetzalcoatl's legend was coming True.
D) they were dreaming, because they had never seen white skin.

Question 52

Montezuma lost popularity at home because he

A) surrendered to Cortés.
B) attacked the Spaniards.
C) cooperated with Cortés.
D) ended the practice of sacrifice.

Question 53

How did allegiance to an emperor make the Aztec and Inca peoples vulnerable to conquest?

A) They had no strong leader.
B)They too easily transferred their allegiance to a new ruler.
C) They were not unified against conquerors.
D) They lacked fighting skills.

Question 54

The duty of the Tocoyricoc was to

A) fight in the Inca army.
B) teach young warriors.
C) ensure loyalty and efficiency.
D) set up local governments.

Question 55

Who was the leader of the Spanish explorers who invaded the Aztec empire?

A) Balboa
B) Columbus
C) Cortés
D) Las Casas

Question 56

More than one-third of Mexico's population died in less than twelve months from

A) bubonic plague.
B) malaria.
C) influenza.
D) smallpox.

Question 57

Which of these describe the Inca Empire in 1531?

A) strongly unified
B) expansionist
C) divided by a power struggle
D) weakened by disease

Question 58

The last Aztec emperor, who ruled when the Spanish arrived, was

A) Sapa Inca.
B) Montezuma II.
C) Quetzalcoatl.
D) Tlaxcallan.

Question 59

When the Spaniards arrived, the Aztecs described them as

A) devils appearing out of the earth.
B) riding in mountains floating on the sea.
C) gods with brown skin.
D) barbarians of no significance.

Question 60

Slavery in the Aztec empire had no racial basis.

Question 61

What was the name of the special emissary sent from Cuzco to keep tabs on governors?

Question 62

How did Montezuma's foreign policy differ from that of his brother?

Question 63

Compare and contrast the foreign policies of the Aztec and Incas.

Question 64

Evaluate the factors which led to Spanish victory over the Incas.

Question 65

According to the Inca, who was Inti?

Question 66

What was the language of the Inca Empire?

Question 67

Evaluate the factors which led to Spanish victory over the Aztecs.

Question 68

To ensure procreation, the Incas held mass marriages in which people were partnered according to physical traits.

Question 69

Compare and contrast the social structures of the Aztecs and Incas.

Question 70

Why was smallpox so deadly to the Amerinds?

Question 71

Who was the Aztec god that was supposed to return as a light-skinned man?

Question 72

The disease of smallpox ravaged both Aztec and Incan society.

Question 73

Aztec women believed they would live in the afterlife as goddesses if they died in childbirth.

Question 74

The Incas were aware of Spanish defeat of the Aztecs.

Question 75

How did Montezuma II die?

Question 76

Discuss the religious beliefs of the Aztecs, and include how these beliefs affected their war with the Spaniards.

Question 77

In which modern South American country was the Inca Empire centered?

Question 78

Who were the "strangers in floating mountains"?

Question 79

Men killed in battle in Mexico believed they would return as cobras.

Question 80

Atahuallpa was ordered to submit to which two men?